For example, employees could work from home one, two or three days a week, or they could work four longer days with a half day off,' said Catherine Olivieri, vice president of human resources. 'In hindsight, our initial rollout involved too many options.

Komen, a Dallas-based nonprofit that funds breast cancer research, HR has played a critical role in shaping the flexwork program the organization launched four years ago for its 220 full-time employees. HR tries to serve as the referee, helping to figure out how we can make flexibility work for all parties.'Īt Susan G. 'There's also the fear that employees won't understand that we're a service company and that client needs supersede individual flexwork arrangements. 'We still have managers who hesitate to approve flexwork and telecommuting because they fundamentally believe that if you aren't onsite every day, you aren't doing your job,' Glatzhofer said. But many leaders are skittish about allowing employees to work in unorthodox situations. It should also spell out how flex workers should use company devices and networks so that HR protects the organization's proprietary data and intellectual property.Īt Aecom, employees must formally request and receive approval from their managers and HR. The policy should include expectations for how work will get done outside the office, incorporating work hours, communications and home-office needs. The type of role, attendance record, tenure with the organization and job performance are all factors that might impact individual eligibility. The policy should also include eligibility guidelines, such as a description of who is eligible for flexwork and under what circumstances. 'We've deployed them in a more limited way on the construction side, because you can't put up a building from your kitchen.'Īn organization's flexwork arrangement will depend on the nature of the business, but in all cases, HR needs to develop a clear and comprehensive policy that details exactly how managers can implement it and how employees can use it.

'Both flexwork and telecommuting are most common on the design side of our business,' Glatzhofer said. They defined flexible work as a variable in-office schedule, while telecommuting is defined as working from home. But as flexwork and telecommuting―an arrangement in which employees work remotely most or all the time―grow in popularity and become more customized, organizations often get creative to develop policies that will work best for them.Īt Los Angeles-based Aecom, a design and construction firm with 85,000 global employees, the HR and legal departments worked together to develop the company's flexwork policy, said Sonja Glatzhofer, vice president of human resources. most days, with a small degree of freedom to work from home on Fridays or sign off early in the event of a personal conflict. How should HR define flexwork? At many employers, initial flexwork programs mean employees work from the office from 9 a.m. The study concluded that a well-implemented flexwork policy can help your company, as long as HR addresses the most pressing concerns of employees and managers. AnĪmerican Sociological Association study demonstrated that IT workers at aįortune 500 company who participated in a flexible work program reported higher levels of job satisfaction and reduced levels of burnout and psychological stress than employees at the same company who did not participate. HR professionals who are new to offering flexwork are often relieved to learn that there is a clear business case in favor of it. And that number is expected to grow as the tight talent market pushes more employers to adopt flexible working arrangements to accommodate the scheduling needs of hard-to-find-and-keep employees. Employee Workforce report, from 1.8 million to 3.9 million workers. workers who telecommute has risen 115 percent since 2005, according to theĢ017 State of Telecommuting in the U.S. Finding managers who insist that employees adhere to a rigid attendance schedule isn't hard, but it's certainly tougher than before.

Flextime plan definition